Vermont legislator Fred Maslack is fuming that the nation's
marijuana eradication program is little more than a pretext to
destroy the nation's feral hemp genetic pool, left over from the
World War II Hemp for Victory program.

"I think there is an expertise presumed on DEA's part
that should not be presumed, so I had the state auditor of accounts
analyze eradication spending. The most damning statistic in there
is that 99.28% of the marijuana eradicated nationally is in fact
ditchweed. Cultivated marijuana is less than 3/4 of 1% of the
total cannabis eradicated annually.

"It is no wonder the DEA is fighting hemp tooth and nail,
because that is what their whole campaign is against; in the form
of ditchweed. As far as the War on Drugs is concerned they would
be better off pulling up goldenrod. This aspect shows what the
DEA's real interest is. For as long as I've been following this
data, ditchweed has been the issue, and it is a great fraud being
perpetrated on the American people, because there is no drug potential
in this stuff, DEA testimony notwithstanding.

"They're misrepresenting what they're doing," he
said. "It amounts to consumer fraud; it may all be labeled
marijuana, but it certainly won't get you high. Personally I feel
that my intelligence is being grievously insulted."

A keen supporter of public safety, Maslack feels that this
program is actually a detriment to police crime control. "It's
high time to reallocate this law enforcement money. I hate to
rain on their outdoor recreational activities, but the same money
could just as well be used to control drunk drivers, which is
a better use of the funds and that's where they should be redirected."
[ Representative Fred Maslack, 800-322-5616, Fmaslack@Leg.state.vt.us
]

[Ed's note: The total number of ditchweed cannabis plants reported
to be eradicated in 1996 exceeds 400 million! South Dakota and
Missouri eradicated over 150 million ditchweed plants each. These
plants should be processed for their fiber and hurd content instead
of being destroyed.]